Digital Storm's Project Modena: A Badass Gaming Rig You Can Afford

Digital Storm is known for providing gaming PCs for every need, whether you want an affordable entry-level system or a tricked-out monster with custom paint and liquid cooling. The company's upcoming Project Modena desktop could find a happy middle ground between the two, offering a striking, VR-friendly design with custom lighting and powerful components for a fairly attainable price.

Key Specs and Features

Project Modena's unique design looks like a "greatest hits" mashup of Digital Storm's best PCs, with multiple see-through windows and a large grille that runs through the entire center of the machine. The system also features full RGB exterior lighting, which can be customized via software.

The PC's key ports are located at the top for easy plug-and-play access — there's even a top-facing HDMI port designed to make plugging in your VR headset extra simple.

One of Project Modena's side windows shows off the system's storage drives, which isn't very common on these types of PCs. It's a nice way to brag about just how many blazing SSDs you have in your machine.

You can expect Project Modena to support the latest and greatest components out there. The model we saw packed an Intel 7700K processor, 32GB of RAM, 2TB of storage, a total of 4 500GB SSDs, and two Nvidia GTX 1080 graphics cards. The desktop also supports Digital Storm's HydroLux Pro liquid cooling system with custom yellow fluid. Like with most Digital Storm machines, you'll have tons of options when it comes to parts and custom colors.

Pricing and Availability

Project Modena is slated to launch in the Fall of 2017, for an estimated starting price of $1,500.

Early Impressions

Project Modena's design is striking, even by Digital Storm's high standards. My favorite feature was the set of chassis lights that cycled through a variety of colors, which could be a nice complement to any RGB keyboards and mice you might already have handy. While Modena isn't the first PC I've seen with a front-facing HDMI port for VR (the MSI Trident is a recent example), it's nice to see more PC makers embrace the trend of helping you set up your VR headset as painlessly as possible.

Why You Should Care

Digital Storm already offers a variety of stunning-looking gaming PCs, but Project Modena has the potential to deliver some of the company's higher-end design features in a more affordable package. The system's custom backlighting is impressive, and the PC's convenient, VR-minded port layout makes it a great choice for virtual reality junkies. We're eager to spend more time with Project Modena when it launches late this year, so stay tuned for our full review.